Everyone loves a bargain, and as Americans, we’re used to getting deals and discounts if we only search hard enough. Unfortunately there is no black friday sale, or after Christmas discounts for term life insurance.
So is there such a thing as discount term life insurance? Can you really find a sale on life insurance? While technically no, you can find and search for the best pricing on a term life insurance policy. Even though term life is fairly similar from company to company, you will find a variety of pricing.
In this blog post I’ll write about how you can get that discount on term life insurance, as well as what to look for in a term life insurance company. If you like, you can compare quotes right below this parragraph, or keep reading for more on discounted term life insurance.
When evaluating a life insurance company, the most important factor is the financial strength of the insurance carrier. You’re buying a policy because you want to protect your family for the long term, and need a company that will be around in 20,30, or even 50 years. So how do you know if a life insurance company is financially sounds? There are a few organizations that rate the financial strength of life insurance companies.
Most popular is A.M Best as well as Standard and Poor’s (S&P). A.M Best has 15 possible ratings - which they break down into 2 categories - secure, and vulnerable. You certainly don’t want to do business with any company that has a vulnerable rating. Here are the secure ratings:
Any life insurance company with a lower than B+ rating from A.M Best would be considered Vulnerable, and I would not recommend them. In fact, you can find plenty of excellent A, or A+ companies, so you would not need to consider anything below that.
Once you have found a group of high quality life insurance carriers, the next step in getting a discount on term life insurance is getting life insurance quotes. While a discount doesn’t exist, this next example will show you how shopping around for the best rates can save you money.
Let’s take an example of a 50 Year Old Female Looking for a $250,000 Term Life Insurance Policy and see which companies offer the best rates, and which aren’t. We’ll assume she is in great health and a non smoker. Here are some of the best and worst rates for this quote:
SBLI: $372.50 Annually
Protective Life: $385.20 Annually
Banner Life: $402.50 Annually
MetLife: $406.50 Annually
Lincoln National: $532.50 Annually
Nationwide: $532 Annually
Mutual of Omaha: $532.50 Annually
Lincoln Benefit Life: $537.50 Annually
The difference between the best and worst rate is $165 annually, or $3,300 over the life of the policy, for the exact same coverage! By choosing a more competitively priced company you can save over 30% from companies like Nationwide, for example.
While you won’t find a sale on life insurance, the way to get discount term life insurance is by comparing quotes among the best companies.